Key Concepts of Lean by Mike Lipke

Dramatic economic conditions often lead to major changes in how customers use products and services as they learn what they believe are new and better uses. The current downturn will lead to similar changes though we may not understand what all of them are at this time. Good companies are re-evaluating their business models in anticipation of these changes. One thing is for certain, companies that improve efficiencies and reduce wasteful activity will be winners as things improve.

Scholars and academic researchers have developed numerous business practice innovations a company might adopt in an effort to reinvent its business model. However, not all are applicable or beneficial to most wood products manufacturing companies. For example, Six Sigma has transformed many companies and when utilized effectively can lead to dramatically improved bottom line results. However, the techniques of Six Sigma are more applicable to discrete manufacturing processes. While lumber mills have

Log Carriages

Designed to use significantly fewer moving parts, the Advanced Sawmill Machinery Series 830 log carriage features ASM’s Smart Dog System, using only one tong assembly per knee to perform all clamping tasks from reaching out to manhandle a monster log to retracting gently to grasp a small board. The Smart Dog System allows the tongs to pre-position, reducing cycling time and increasing headrig productivity

The narrow design of the ASM carriage knee with arch-bracing allows a much better scan picture, resulting in a more accurate cutting solution and rock-solid impact resistance. The heavy-duty ASM carriage frame, axles and dual chromed round ways are machined and keyed to eliminate alignment issues. Additionally, ASM mounts the hydraulic linears, valves and kicker cylinders on the side of each knee for easy maintenance access and a better center of gravity.

Machinery and More by Dan Shell

In these trying times of tough lumber markets and soft demand, USNR Vice President of Sales Chris Blomquist has some advice for sawmillers: “Give us a call and see if we can help.” The company’s staff is constantly on the road visiting mills and has seen a wide variety of solutions to sawmill problems, he explains.

“Even if it’s just a small thing, we can help you with it,” Blomquist says.

During tough economic conditions, “We at USNR are familiar with the cycles in our industry, and we focus on helping our customers with low-cost capital projects that provide high value.

Opportunity: Estate Taxes by John McAlister

The economic crisis in the U.S. has reached global proportions and caused a global recession. No doubt you have heard a number of economists say that when the financial system in the U.S. gets “sick,” every other country around the world catches the same virus. Recessions are an everyday part of our global economic system and we’ve had no less than 14 recessions during the past 100 years. With every recession there seems to be a tendency to blame some group of people for its root cause. We also blame a few government bureaucrats who can’t seem to help themselves by wanting to tinker with the system to ease everyone’s pain, or seek more governmental control. Letting the economy heal itself may in fact be the best medicine.

Within the confines of our current recession a number of business people are seeing the “glass half full” and are sometimes taking bold steps to increase their market share and be ready to pounce on the competition when the economy turns around. Family busin

Value-Added by Jennifer McCary

A decade ago, Lumbra family trio—Reuben (77) and sons Benny (48) and Stephen (39)—decided to get their feet wet in the value-added arena, making the initial transition from a green lumber mill to one offering kiln dried hardwood products. “We didn’t really want to saw more, but we wanted to do more with our own products. Drying it was the first step,” states Reuben, who with his dad co-founded Oscar & Reuben Lumbra, Inc. 57 years ago.

Stephen, who is responsible for dry end operations, adds, “We figured we would start with that and then if we wanted to move on to more (value-added), we could. I wish we hadn’t been so scared and jumped into it a little sooner.” Key benefits for the Lumbras, who work mostly in the white woods, has been the ability to hold inventory longer and transport it farther. That has been especially helpful in extending their market reach during the current extended downturn. The Lumbras expect one more year of tough markets before the anticipated recover

Hard News In The Making

Demand for lumber in the U.S. this year is, not surprisingly, sliding to its lowest level in modern history, but will then move toward a slow recovery starting next year, according to a new forecast issued by Western Wood Products Assn.

The poor economy and a housing market that has plummeted to historic lows are the chief reasons for the remarkable decline in lumber demand. WWPA predicts U.S. lumber demand will decline this year to 28.9 billion BF, down almost 30% from 2008.

Huey Goes West by Rich Donnell

If you live in the South, you may have already read an interview I conducted with Huey Long, Jr. in one of our affiliate magazines, Southern Lumberman. Long, who is 60, has had two remarkable careers, one in our industry, and the other in the military, from which he retired in 2004 after 33 years, rising to Colonel. Long hasn’t retired from our industry yet. Good thing, too. Our industry needs talented, experienced men like Long.

The part of Long’s career I want to take a second look at is his stint as Director of Sawmill Operations and then VP of Operations with legendary Pacific Lumber Co. (PALCO) in California.

The New Word to Watch by Jennifer McCary

It may have always been this way and only becomes apparent as one gains wisdom over time. (That’s the PC way of saying “grows older.”) Or it could be the spin culture that we live in today where it seems more effort is spent on coining a phrase to dilute harsh concepts like terrorism and war than getting the facts right before passing it off as breaking news. Or it may be something that only wordsmiths like yours truly even notice.

What am I talking about? It is the way a certain prefix or catch word is used first as a novelty to convey an idea, gets picked up by another reporter, is repeated, adopted, adapted and finally a new definition is added to the dictionary. Think prefixes like “eco” or “bio” – each of which now takes up a whole page in Webster’s Dictionary. How about the word “green”? Remember when it was just one of many colors in a box of crayons. Now we have “green” building codes, “green” building products, “green” production processes…all of which paint you int